(d.1818), was the first Hawaiian convert to Christianity. Orphaned at age 10, he was raised by his uncle to be a pagan priest (kahuna) of the Hawaiian religion. He grew disillusioned with the rituals and chants, and left on an American ship bound for New England with his Hawaiian friend, Thomas Hopu. There he was befriended by students and professors of Yale College and soon became a Christian. He studied Greek and Hebrew and translated sections of the Bible into the Hawaiian language. In his memoirs, which sold 500,000 copies after his death, Henry Opukahai’a wrote:
My poor countrymen, without knowledge of the true God, and ignorant of the future world, have no Bible to read, no Sabbath … 2505
Henry Opukahai’a’s zeal for Christ and love for the Hawaiian people inspired the first American Board of Missions to Hawaii in 1820. It was led by his friend, Thomas Hopu, Hiram Bingham, and a small group of New Englanders. They reduced the Hawaiian language to writing, set up schools and churches, and convinced the Hawaiian women to wear dresses. Amid much solemnity and rejoicing the remains of Henry Opukahai’a were returned to Hawaii in 1993, 175 years after his death in Connecticut, and were reinterred at Napo’opo’o, Kona, Hawaii2506
Neale, John Mason (1818–1866), was an English poet and language scholar, knowing over 20 languages. In 1842, he was ordained a clergyman and translated many hymns from their original Greek and Latin tongues. Many christmas hymns were written or translated by him, including: Jerusalem the Golden; The Day is Past and Over; Come, Ye Faithful; and the favorite Good King Wenceslas:
Good King Wenceslas looked out
On the feast of Stephen,
When the snow lay round about,
Deep and crisp and even.2507
In 1861, John Mason Neale translated the twelfth century Latin hymn, Veni, Veni, Emmanuel into English:
O come, O come, Emmanuel,
And ransom captive Israel.2508